The PlayStation 3 Slim is available for pre-order at Amazon, and it's already climbed to the top of the online retailer's video game sales charts.

Citing "great demand" and notifying customers of "shortages across the U.S," Amazon is currently limiting purchases of the newly-redesigned $299 console to one per household.

Sony unveiled the new PS3 Slim at GamesCom in Cologne this week, and talked to Gamasutra about the console's 30 percent size, weight and power consumption reduction.

Most significant is the $100 price cut ahead of the key holiday season. Sony had languished under pricing pressure from analysts, retailers and publishers alike in recent months, and the new price point is widely expected to improve Sony's competitive position in the hardware market.